Public Defender's Office

Kim Nelson serves our community as District Public Defender for Loudon, Meigs, Morgan and Roane Counties. She has served in the Criminal and General Sessions Courts for all four counties for the last eight years. Kim has taken a leadership role with the Tennessee Public Defenders Conference as Legislative Chair and has been successful in advocating for additional resources to help assist our impoverished citizens. Kim has advanced the ideas of a holistic approach to criminal defense which include addressing addiction and mental health issues that are often the reason our loved ones find themselves on the wrong side of the law. Kim has spearheaded a pilot project with the Tennessee Office of Criminal Justice Programs to provide forensic social workers as part of the client team to assist with recovery, mental health and and other client needs. She was proud to be one of the first offices in Tennessee to offer this service to our community. Kim has had the pleasure of partnering with our local Judges and District Attorney in starting a Recovery Court in Roane County. She has represented clients in the Loudon County Veterans Court and Morgan County Recovery Court. These programs provide aggressive treatment and supervision to citizens with legal and substance abuse problems.